This disclosure relates generally to inspecting and, more particularly, to controlling a beam from a curved transducer array.
Phased array inspection tools are well-known. One of the tools is a phased array probe. Phased array probes typically consist of an array of transducer elements. Each of the individual transducer elements can be pulsed (excited) separately. The pulses cause transducer elements to generate sound waves that combine to form a sound beam that propagates through a component. Potential defects in the component reveal themselves by reflecting the sound beam back to the transducer.
Typical phased array systems include flat (non-curved) arrays of transducer elements. These arrays of transducer elements constitute a flat (non-curved) surface of a probe. The timing of pulsing (or exciting) individual transducer elements is phased or varied. The phasing changes how the sound waves from transducer elements combine with each other. The phasing steers and shapes the sound beam. Flat probes, however, are not well-suited for inspecting many components, especially components having relatively complex geometries.